Knives and Lies and all other things (Clato Fanfic)
by VAHungerPotter
Summary: Before there was blood and before there was death, there was Clove and there was Cato. Fan fix written when i was thirteen, not yet finished and i wrote it on my other account but decided to put it on this one instead, please read and review :)


Clove's P.O.V

Trudging through dirt, and trying not to fall over in the ridiculous shoes my mother has forced upon me, I looked out at the sea of houses that was the Victors Village.

There were 21 houses in use and today; one particular house was about to welcome 18 families that were eager for food and alcohol. Including mine.

I hardly had a family though. A mother and a father and a Clove. That's me. Mother said it was an honor to be invited to such an event and I looked up at her with an incredulous expression. She was short for a woman, with shoulder length black hair, a narrow face and a blank personality.

My father, on the other hand, was tall, with broad shoulders and soft brown eyes. We saw more eye to eye than mother and I did.

"Clove, fix your skirt, All the pleats are coming undone," I smoothed down my skirt, staring straight ahead. "And for heavens sake, why didn't you wash your face before we left?"

"I did."

"Don't be ridiculous, look, there's dirt behind your ear!"

The victor house on my right had no sign of life in it. All the windows were shut and lights were out. I soaked in every part of District 2 that I could remember.

"Clove, are you listening to me?" I sighed, and looked over at my mother for a second before looking forward again.

"Yes."

"Take your hair out of that ridiculous ponytail, it looks like you have coal coming down your back." I could see Flax's house and the people pouring in and out of it. The idea of wasting a years supply of hard work and labor on some stupid reaping party made my teeth clench. In the games, eating all your food at once is a nice way to get killed. Why do people not think of these things?

"And when we get home you're going straight in the tub young lady. I will not have my daughter looking like a slob at the reaping it's far to impractical." I didn't even notice that my mother had taken my hair out and was now attempting to braid it back. I squirmed out of her grip and walked faster.

The party my family was invited to was at the 58th Annual Hunger Games Victor's house. Flax Witherson was a fat idiot who was drunk most the time, lived with his 18-year-old brother Cato and won the games on pure strength. He had no brains, but he did know how to use a club and that's what got him his crown.

Cato, on the other hand, was smarter than Flax but just as arrogant. On the occasion that senior classes came down to our class at the Academy, Cato would always demonstrate, a stuck up smirk on his face. His aim and strength was remarkable, but I knew I was just as good.

"Clove baby you made it!" my lip twitched at the sight of Flax. There was a beer bottle in his hand and he was falling over his own feet as he approached my family and I.

"Good afternoon Flax." My mother said, smiling. Flax glanced at my mother out of the corner of his eye and nodded. Swinging his arm around me, my knees buckled under the weight. How could one arm be so god dam heavy?

"My parents are in the living room with all the other old people," My father snorted. "You can head on through there. But you," he pinched my cheeks and I slapped his hand away, narrowing my eyes. He laughed. "Come on, I'm taking you on a tour."

"No thank you." My parents walked away into the house and I sighed. Flax attempted to put his arm around me again, but I grabbed his wrist and bent it back before he could.

"Don't touch me." I walked away, wobbling in my heels.

For most of the afternoon I sat in a corner taking small sips out of my cup and watching the rest of the world move by in slow motion. I was starring at what must have been an attempt of an ice sculpture when something stepped in front of it and didn't move out of the way.

"Hello Clove." My eyes swiveled up into a pair of crystal blue pupils.

Cato sat down in a chair opposite me. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back so that his legs were stretched out in front of him and were basically on top of mine. I cleared my throat.

"Why are you here by yourself?" He asked me.

"I like being alone." Cato studied my blank face. I wasn't showing any emotion and I wanted him to leave.

"What about your family?"

"What about them?"

"You're not alone when you're with them."

"That's because I have to be."

"You don't like your family?"

"You don't like your brother."

"Why would you think that?"

"Why do you ask so many questions?"

"Why don't you smile?"

"Because you ask too many questions." The corner of Cato's mouth twitched, like _he_ was going to smile. He was still studying my face, and I was back to looking at the ice sculpture. "Is there something you want?" I said, with clear impatience.

"I want you to look at me." I sighed and inched my head in his direction.

"I'm looking at you."

"Isn't my face more interesting than that ice sculpture?"

"Not really."

It only took a second before Cato's face was inches from mine. I let out a short gasp and leaned back.

"Okay, cut the crap. I know you Clove. You sit here, acting like you don't give a shit about the world but I can see right through you. I know what you're thinking, and I know how good you are. You think you can't give anything away because you don't show any emotion but it's all in your eyes. The pain. Longing. Sadness," I narrowed my eyes but kept quiet. I wanted to hear this. "Everyone's got it tough around here but you know what they do? They deal with it. They don't mope around feeling sorry for themselves and make everyone else around them depressed."

"Shut up. You don't know me and you don't know anything about my problems."

"Problems? Ha!" Cato laughed coldly. "In case you haven't noticed everyone's got problems these days. The only people that don't are ones that live in the Capitol, but they're pretty fucked up anyway with all that crazy colour shit."

"Don't disrespect the Capitol. They're the ones that keep our lives in order."

"I'm not disrespecting nothing. I'm just saying you've got to be pretty messed up to die your skin blue."

"Go away. You don't know anything."

"I know you."

"The hel you do!" I stood up furiously. Who the hel does he think he is? Cato Witherson has never spoken to me before. Ever. And now, the first time he does he acts like he knows my whole life story? I wanted to scream. I wanted to throw a knife through his eye and watch him bleed out. But the thing that made me angrier than anything was the irony.

He was right.

I shoved my way past him and headed towards the room my parents were in. I'm not staying in this house for another 2 hours.

"Clove," Cato caught my arm, and I tried to pull away from his grip but Jesus, he was strong. "I'll see you soon."

"Let go of me." He released me and I walked away, but not before he could hear me whisper under my breath: "I'm sure you will."


End file.
